If one word could describe the recent Extreme Masters final it would have to be this one: unpredictable. This event, in all of its glory, encapsulated the evolution of Counter-Strike and the current state of the game. It was chock full of flame outs, underdog triumphs, and a little “any given Sunday” effect.

Flame Outs:

The biggest flameout came from fnatic. To go from the top of the heap at NGL-One to being knocked out by SoA is one of the quickest changes of fortune in the history of the sport. Lucky for them they managed to recover from their dramatic Extreme Masters exit with a victory at SEC, making the next two teams the most egregious offenders at Extreme Masters.

MiBR managed one victory, over the slouching fnatic. Their newly remixed GameCrashers lineup looked like it would do some serious damage internationally. However without Gaules and Lance sitting at a machine, it became obvious that having five fraggers in combination doesn’t work no matter how good they are. It also became clear why all of these players went their separate ways after GameCrashers; they all filled the same roles in the teams they dispersed to. This is why they had considerably more success when replacing older and worn out players in g3x and MiBR than they did in GameCrashers.

Excello however was the biggest disappointment. They were untouchable in their Online group, yet they couldn’t score more than 10 rounds and averaged just 8 rounds versus teams in Group B. In fact, the biggest impact the team had on the tournament was tihOp tying up the internet and lagging the HLTVs with his “movie” downloads.

Underdog Triumphs:

SoA, SoA, SoA. When fnatic fell to Virtus.Pro on the final play day of Extreme Masters, the unassuming Danish underdogs, Spirit of Amiga, moved into the top spot in the group of death. They then opened up the LAN portion of the event with a victory over MiBR. They would go on to lose to roccat, tie fnatic, and then lose to mouz.

Their surprise tie versus fnatic set up one of the most interesting CS story lines in recent memory. SoA had the same record as fnatic and tied them in rounds setting up a rematch to determine who advanced to the relegation round. A shocking 16-12 victory for the Danes set off some of the most enthusiastic cheering seen in eSports history and nearly ended the lives of several CRT monitors.

Mousesports would emerge from the shadows of their past by dramatically improving on their fourth place finish at the NGL-One finals. The German squad would run the table in their group by defeating everyone and with that automatically qualified for the double elimination portion of the finals. In the finals they dropped to the lower bracket against aTTaX but then rallied to defeat SK, score revenge against aTTaX, and then slay eSTRO in two lopsided victories.

Even though they didn’t take the title, eSTRO also belongs in this category as well. Their victories over roccat, SK, and aTTaX were monumental and it brought the old project_kr team the closest to a gold medal since WEG3. Replacing Miffy with Ari seems to have paid huge dividends. The eSTRO team, which barely made it to the relegation phase of the finals by losing less than Virtus did, exploded on Saturday. They shocked everyone present and were responsible for the destruction of Walle’s keyboard.

Any Given Sunday:

Finally, eSports has reached the level of professional sports. A team simply cannot dominate in the same fashion that SK-Gaming did in 2003. The level of skill is so great that any of the professional teams can beat any other depending on their form. For instance, fnatic bombed out of Extreme Masters yet came back and won SEC. SK-Gaming, who were poised to win the event, fizzled on Saturday, while eSTRO, who BARELY qualified from their group, deep sixed roccat, aTTaX, and SK to place second.

eSports is entering a phase that could reinvigorate the competitive scene. While there are still new strategies to be had, it is the level of chemistry, preparedness, and coordination that determines who will rule the day. When all of these are equal, as is often the case at the highest level, things such as the team’s mood, how much sleep they got the night before, and if they just have “it” determine who wins. This makes for interesting Counter-Strike and marks eSports’ ascension from merely a game into a full fledged sport.